Technical Field
The present disclosure relates generally to a smart antenna system, and more particularly, but not exclusively, to a distributed indoor smart antenna system for over-the-air television reception.
Description of the Related Art
Content distributors deliver audiovisual content to users through a variety of different systems. These systems may include over-the-air broadcast television, satellite television, and cable television. Each of these systems has advantages and disadvantages. For example, over-the-air television is generally free, but is limited to the broadcast range of the system and which may be affected by the terrain between the receiving antenna and the broadcast tower. While satellite and cable television may be accessed at great distances from the distributor, they are generally rather expensive and may have their own limitations as well (e.g., weather).
Many people are unwilling to pay monthly service fees to a satellite or cable television distributor and would prefer to receive free channels via over-the-air television. Unfortunately, hills, mountains, great distances, and other obstacles can lead to poor reception of over-the-air television signals. As a result, the viewer may be unable to receive over-the-air television or the received signals may be insufficient to provide a usable image to the viewer.
Over-the-air digital TV reception is often unreliable, particularly indoors. There are a number of variables that affect reception and not all are under the control of the consumer. Problems include weak signal coverage, diverse locations of the TV transmission towers, and limitations affecting optimal location of the receiving antenna.
Generally, optimal over-the-air digital TV reception is only achieved with an outdoor antenna, mounted at the highest point of a single family residence (building, other structure, or the like) and using an antenna with relatively high gain. Installing an outdoor over-the-air antenna is not desirable for average consumers. Specialized tools and techniques are required that are not readily available. Additionally, confirming that a reliable set of signals within a desired margin have been achieved may only be determined by specialized RF testing equipment and the knowledge to use them. These facts (as well as aesthetic concerns related to large antennas on a roof) discourage most consumers from using outdoor over-the-air antennas.
Accordingly, the limitations associated with outdoor over-the-air antennas have led to an increased use of indoor antennas. Most indoor antennas have planar antenna structures that attempt to emulate a dipole in one or more planes. Alternatively, some indoor antennas are omni-directional. Notably, a high number of consumers are unsatisfied with the reception received using indoor antennas since over-the-air digital TV indoor antennas introduce a host of new potential reception inhibiting factors that were not anticipated in the planning for digital TV coverage and reception. These inhibiting factors include: (1) a weaker signal due to attenuation (loss) through a building's outside walls, (2) uncontrolled bouncing of signals within the room where the indoor antenna is located, and (3) interference with other electronic devices in a residence (building, other structure, or the like) in which the indoor antenna is located.
The effect of signal loss is a reduction in a digital TV station's coverage area and/or reduced margin for acceptable reception under normal variations of a transmitted RF signal (i.e., rain or foliage). The effect of signal bouncing is a condition known as multipath, in which the same desired signal may enter the antenna from different paths, and the multiple signals corrupt or cancel out one another for that particular channel. Multipath is a variable of many factors and is difficult to predict or correct when it is severe. Other signal degradation aspects may also need to be taken into consideration, including movable obstructions in an environment that may absorb a signal, interfere with signal, or otherwise contribute to multipath, such as a human body.
There have been many improvements in signal transmission, reception, and processing in recent years. U.S. patent applications in one or more of these fields include: U.S. Patent Publication No. 2013/0120658 (Method and Device for Band Translation); U.S. Patent Publication No. 2012/0167147 (Low Noise Block Converter Feedhorn); U.S. Patent Publication No. 2012/0135678 (Drift Compensator fora Tuning Device); U.S. Patent Publication No. 2011/0159804 (Methods and Apparatus for Identifying Signal Degradation in a Receiver); U.S. Patent Publication No. 2011/0059690 (Method and Device for Band Translation); U.S. Patent Publication No. 2009/0254955 (Low Noise Block Converter Feedhorn); U.S. Patent Publication No. 2009/0172748 (Drift Compensator for a Tuning Device); U.S. Patent Publication No. 2006/0048197 (Method and Device for Band Translation); and U.S. Patent Publication No. 2006/0031894 (Method and Device for Band Translation).
U.S. patents in one or more of these fields include: U.S. Pat. No. 9,179,170 (Low Noise Block Converter Feedhorn); U.S. Pat. No. 8,855,547 (Method And Device For Band Translation); U.S. Pat. No. 8,626,097 (Methods And Apparatus For Identifying Signal Degradation In A Receiver); U.S. Pat. No. 8,528,025 (Drift Compensator For A Tuning Device); U.S. Pat. No. 8,369,772 (Method And Device For Band Translation); U.S. Pat. No. 8,132,214 (Low Noise Block Converter Feedhorn); U.S. Pat. No. 8,108,900 (Drift Compensator For A Tuning Device); U.S. Pat. No. 7,792,486 (Method And Device For Band Translation); and U.S. Pat. No. 7,502,587 (Method And Device For Band Translation).
Advanced antenna and receiver design techniques can be implemented to minimize or overcome some of the limitations of indoor over-the-air antennas. However, these advanced antenna and receiver design techniques also have disadvantages as well. For example, most suppliers of indoor over-the-air antennas for digital TV reception strongly recommend that the antenna be placed at a window location as high as possible within the home (building, other structure, or the like). This is often not possible or practical if the home does not have a window facing the general direction of the local TV broadcast towers. The more the antenna is moved from line-of-sight orientation, the greater the effects of multipath. Additionally, if the central TV viewing location is on the first floor of a residence, placing the indoor over-the-air antenna in a second floor window and cabling to the central TV location on the first floor is a difficult and expensive endeavor.
Another challenge with indoor over-the-air antennas is the inability to receive all the available broadcast TV stations from a single antenna location. An example of this difficulty is when an antenna is only able to receive one particular TV station in one room, while only able to receive another particular TV station in another room. This may be an effect of multipath. Usually, a compromise location must be selected that still leaves one or more desired TV stations unavailable on the TV. It is with respect to these and other considerations that the embodiments described herein have been made.
Notably, all of the subject matter discussed in this section is not necessarily prior art and should not be assumed to be prior art merely as a result of its discussion in this section. Accordingly, any recognition of problems in the prior art discussed in this section or associated with such subject matter should not be treated as prior art unless expressly stated to be prior art. Instead, the discussion of any subject matter in this section should be treated as part of the identification of the technological problem to be overcome, which in and of itself may also be inventive.